Son of Christian artist TobyMac dies at 21 in Nashville

FILE - This Feb. 15, 2016 file photo shows Christian artist TobyMac at the 58th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. TobyMac said in a statement that his 21-year-old son Truett Foster Mckeehan was a “magnetic son, brother and friend,” after Mckeehan was found dead at home in Nashville, Tennessee on Wednesday. A representative for TobyMac said Mckeenhan died sometime “Tuesday night or Wednesday morning” and a cause of death has not been determined.

Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Christian artist TobyMac has recalled the artistry of his 21-year-old son, who was found dead in Nashville, Tennessee, this week.

TobyMac praised Truett Foster Mckeehan as a “magnetic son, brother and friend” in a statement released Thursday, a day after McKeehan was found dead in a Nashville home.

A representative for TobyMac said Mckeenhan died sometime “Tuesday night or Wednesday morning” and a cause of death has not been determined.

TobyMac has won seven Grammys, both as a solo artist and as a member of the Christian rap/rock group DC Talk.

TobyMac’s statement says his son, who was also an artist, had just played his first show a week ago, a dream of his since he was 12. TobyMac said he was a proud as he could be and recalled his son’s smile, his laugh and his “untamable grand personality.”

Video seems to contradict hotel that ousted Gretchen Wilson

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Video from a police body camera appears to contradict a New Mexico hotel’s story about removing country singer Gretchen Wilson following an alleged noise complaint.

The video obtained by The Associated Press in a public records request shows a confused and angry Wilson in a robe telling police she was asleep as she’s asked to leave around 3 a.m. Oct 13.

The Grammy Award-winning singer told an officer in the video that she did nothing wrong.

“We don’t even have a TV on. We were very quiet,” Wilson said.

But the video shows a television on when police enter her room. Wilson, who sang the 2004 hit song “Redneck Woman,” said she and her fiance were drinking wine and talking softly when the pair started getting phone calls about the volume.

“You must be talking about another room,” she said. “It’s just been a nightmare at this hotel.”

A security guard told police someone reported arguing and a glass breaking. The security guard said Wilson had told the hotel to “call the cops.”

But Wilson said the staff at the Hotel Encanto de Las Cruces was retaliating against her after she asked for room service and was denied. She said hotel employees only came once to her room.

An employee is then heard telling Wilson the manager decided the singer and her group could stay. But Wilson refused.

“We’re not going to stay. We are not. We have been treated like (expletive) since we’ve been here,” she said.

Las Cruces police spokesman Dan Trujillo said officers were called to the hotel after Wilson, 46, and other guests had “worn out their welcome.”

Wilson, who had performed at the Las Cruces Country Music Festival the night before, said in a statement that she was in bed when the police arrived.

“There had been no party, no music and not even a TV making noise when I was asked to leave,” the statement said. “I was exhausted and upset just like anyone would be in this situation.”

After she was kicked out, the musician tweeted that the hotel asked her to leave “in the middle of the night for no reason.”

Queen Elizabeth honors Booker Prize winner Margaret Atwood

LONDON (AP) — Shortly after winning her second Booker Prize, Margaret Atwood has received a rare honor from Queen Elizabeth II for her services to literature.

The Canadian novelist and poet was presented with an Order of the Companions of Honor in a ceremony at Windsor Castle Friday.

She said the experience made her “a bit emotional.”

The Press Association quoted Atwood as saying that “when you see the Queen at her age and her schedule that she puts out, it’s an inspiration to everybody, you just keep going.”

Atwood and British author Bernardine Evaristo split the Booker Prize ten days ago, after judges flouted the rule that there should be a single winner. She also won the prestigious fiction award in 2000, and has several U.S., Canadian and French awards.

FILE - This Feb. 15, 2016 file photo shows Christian artist TobyMac at the 58th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. TobyMac said in a statement that his 21-year-old son Truett Foster Mckeehan was a “magnetic son, brother and friend,” after Mckeehan was found dead at home in Nashville, Tennessee on Wednesday. A representative for TobyMac said Mckeenhan died sometime “Tuesday night or Wednesday morning” and a cause of death has not been determined.

https://www.limaohio.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/54/2019/10/web1_AP19297763357663.jpgFILE - This Feb. 15, 2016 file photo shows Christian artist TobyMac at the 58th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. TobyMac said in a statement that his 21-year-old son Truett Foster Mckeehan was a “magnetic son, brother and friend,” after Mckeehan was found dead at home in Nashville, Tennessee on Wednesday. A representative for TobyMac said Mckeenhan died sometime “Tuesday night or Wednesday morning” and a cause of death has not been determined. Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File